Vaccination through lungs may be safer than injections

Washington: New vaccine delivery methods through the lungs offer particular advantages for protection against infectious agents that enter the body through a respiratory track, a new study has revealed.

An added benefit to the technique is the elimination of injection. In ‘Pulmonary Vaccine Delivery: A Realistic Approach?’ Wouter Tonnis and co-authors from University of Groningen and National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (Bilthoven), The Netherlands, described the unique physiology and immune responsiveness of the respiratory track that make pulmonary vaccine delivery such an attractive alternative to traditional injections. Although pulmonary vaccination is still a young field, with much more research needed, evidence suggests administration of a vaccine to the lungs can induce a local immune response more effectively than conventional types of vaccine delivery, in addition to stimulating antibody production throughout the body. This could be especially important for combating pathogens that cause pulmonary diseases. “The lung is an immunologic powerhouse that remains largely unexplored. Theoretically we should be able to avoid needles and simply inhale our vaccines,” Editor-in-Chief Gerald C. Smaldone, MD, PhD, Professor and Chief, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at SUNY-Stony Brook said. The research is published in on the Journal of Aerosol Medicine and Pulmonary Drug Delivery. ANI